"Heartbroken for the team"- Ilona Maher makes her feelings known after Bristol Bears faces tough loss 

Ilona Maher expressed her thoughts as she reacted to the Bristol Bears' tough loss to Trailfinders Women in their PWR Playoff bid. The American rugby player expressed that she was heartbroken by the result of the match, however; the close match was very exciting to watch.

The Bristol Bears lost to Trailfinder Women with a score of 38-39 in a highly dramatic game that kept the spectators on the edge of their seats. Maher reflected on the match's competitive nature and shed light on how women's rugby is pushing the limits as well as being very entertaining for the spectators.

Furthermore, she urged people to extend their support to women's rugby as she hopes to see the sport grow in popularity in the upcoming years. She shared a picture of the result of the recent match on Instagram with a message and wrote:

"Tough result and heartbroken for the team but that game today was f*"ing exciting and you all need to start watching. Women's rugby is on another level."

Ilona Maher reacts to Bristol Bears' loss | Instagram@ilonamaher

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Ilona Maher on the rise of women's rugby

Ilona Maher competes during Exeter Chiefs v Bristol Bears - Allianz Premiership Women's Rugby - Source: Getty

Ilona Maher has been vocal about the need to promote women's rugby to a wider audience to make it a global sport. The American rugby player spoke about how athletes are putting forward great performances on the field; however, the sport is still not popular among the masses.

Maher believes that consistent support by the people will help the sport grow as well as motivate the players to put forward incredible performances. She spoke about Sportspro to bringing a change and said:

“It is great having all these record numbers, but what we want is for them to keep coming back for the next game. One and done is not enough. I am sprinkling a little bit here. But we need people to keep coming. It is not just me alone. There is something special happening not just in England, but around the world in women’s sports and women’s rugby."

"My message is if I am what gets someone to experience rugby, then great. I want more people to play and watch. We are a very stoic sport in a way. I would love to see more personalities in the men’s game. There is a culture in rugby we need to shift. It’s an amazing sport, but also an old sport where the same things have been happening for years," she added.

Moreover, Ilona Maher believes that bringing in more young people into the game will help drive a culture shift as well as motivate the upcoming generation to take up the sport.